Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Bought by Cottonwood Capital Advisors LLC

Cottonwood Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 22.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,144 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 391 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for approximately 0.8% of Cottonwood Capital Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Cottonwood Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,129,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MA. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter worth $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 74.0% in the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on MA. Macquarie raised their target price on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $572.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $567.29.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:MA opened at $533.50 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $489.66 billion, a PE ratio of 40.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $537.70. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $524.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $496.49. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.39 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.00%.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Company Profile

Mastercard Incorporated, a technology company, provides transaction processing and other payment-related products and services in the United States and internationally. The company offers integrated products and value-added services for account holders, merchants, financial institutions, digital partners, businesses, governments, and other organizations, such as programs that enable issuers to provide consumers with credits to defer payments; payment products and solutions that allow its customers to access funds in deposit and other accounts; prepaid programs services; and commercial credit, debit, and prepaid payment products and solutions.